For one thing, there’s this: Among the entertaining emails I’ve received this week is one with this subject line: “Safety Tips for Black Friday”

The best time to get your holiday shopping done is already. The next best time is later. The worst time, therefore, is now.

I’ve got a column in today’s paper about how I’m pretty torn on the whole Black Friday thing, what with it being awful yet also an opportunity to pay less money for something you were going to buy anyway.

But here’s how you can get Black Friday deals without dealing with Black Friday.

1. Set up price alerts. You can watch for a target price from Amazon or Best Buy using a web service called CamelCamelCamel. Naturally, it’s free. You can also watch for apartments or whatever on Craigslist using web service IFTTT.

2. Use flash-deal sites. If you know you’re in the market for something, you can watch out for it on sites like Woot, SteepAndCheap, NewEgg Flash, Amazon Gold Box and countless others. I know I need a new hard drive for a computer, but it’s not exactly urgent. That’s exactly the kind of thing that shows up on these sites from time to time. So when I get a chance to browse through these sites, I do it.

I could actually be a lot smarter about it and use IFTTT yet again. Check out the formulas that people have made just for Woot.

3. Combine deals with your credit card’s superpowers. We’ll have some good coverage on credit card use next week, but here’s one thing you could do to get more bang for your buck. Find out if your credit card offers deals at specific stores. Some cards may have limited-time offers, like cash back if you make a purchase at a particular store.

Please your inner nerd by linking deals!

(Of course, this option is only for you if you know you can be responsible with credit.)

See a deal you like on Groupon? Use a credit card that gives more cash back for purchases of groceries — and buy a Groupon gift card at a grocery store. Now you’ll get cash back for your deeply discounted Groupon buy.